Bioengineering Career Clusters and Frameworks Martin L. Yarmush, M.D, Ph.D., Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ, USA; Susan Engelhardt, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ, USA yarmush@soe.rutgers.edu +1 848 445 6528 Keywords: career framework, career cluster, bioengineering career, career advancement, professional skills, case studies Abstract: A vast majority of biotechnology program graduates seek careers other than those for tenure-track faculty positions. Although current courses in the typical graduate curriculum appropriately deliver strategic discipline-based learning for life science and engineering graduate students, critical is these scientists be made aware of, and prepared for, the full range of careers available within the biomedical science and engineering ecosystem. Employers have defined career frameworks, clarifying the skills and knowledge required for different types of work, defining job families and appropriate career progressions to encourage employee skills-building and retention and enabling managers to have conversations that encourage career development. As each trainee explores his/her career path, it is vitally important for him/her to understand these frameworks and how they should work within them toward career advancement, understanding how to navigate influence of company size, organization structure, performance/associated metrics, work culture, growth/advancement, political/regulatory environment, societal topics/issues, etc., as well as work independence, accountability for impactful results, influence on organizations and (corporate) results, business and societal impacts, and documentation/communication responsibilities. It is based upon this need that we propose the addition of a 3- credit course that guides trainees regarding these career frameworks and discusses specifics relative to overarching biotechnology career paths. The motivation is to enhance our students' competitive skills as, although our curricula produce scientific excellence, technical competence is ?necessary but not sufficient? for carrying out the responsibilities of today's professionals, whether as researchers, or as contributors to business, clinical translation, legal or related areas. The syllabus combines didactic instruction with expository case studies, reinforcing key learnings, as they review and analyze case studies specific to various professional environments and challenges and present recommendations to the class to seed group discussions and further role-play. At the end of the semester, students present a case study based upon their area of professional interest with analysis of the actions and inactions relative to the concepts taught in class. The course will be offered as a permanent component of the Biomedical Engineering graduate program.